MAYA'S POV

I woke up on Saturday feeling like I had been hit by a truck. My head was pounding and my mouth felt like sandpaper.

"Ugh," I groaned, pulling my pillow over my face.

"Good morning, sunshine!" Jenna said way too cheerfully as she walked into my room. "How are you feeling?"

"Like death," I mumbled. "Why are you so happy?"

"Because I didn't stay up until three in the morning binge-watching that stupid show," Jenna said, sitting on the edge of my bed. "I told you not to start a new series on a Friday night."

She was right. I had stayed up way too late watching some drama about rich people with too many problems. But it was so good I couldn't stop.

"What time is it?" I asked, finally removing the pillow from my face.

"Almost noon," Jenna said. "You slept for like twelve hours."

"What?" I sat up quickly, which was a mistake because my head started spinning. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"Because it's Saturday and you don't have work or class," Jenna said, handing me a glass of water. "Drink this. You're probably dehydrated."

I took the water gratefully and drank it all in one go.

"Thanks," I said. "You're the best roommate ever."

"I know," Jenna said with a smile. "Now get up and get ready. We're going out for lunch."

"I don't want to go anywhere," I whined. "I just want to stay in bed and feel sorry for myself."

"Too bad," Jenna said, pulling the blanket off me. "You've been moping around all week about that Erik guy. It's time to get out and have some fun."

Erik. Just hearing his name made my stomach hurt.

We had been dating for about six months, and I really thought things were going well. But last week, he suddenly broke up with me over text. Over text! He said he wasn't ready for a serious relationship and that we wanted different things.

I was devastated. I really liked him.

"I'm not moping," I said defensively.

"Yes, you are," Jenna said. "You've eaten ice cream for dinner three times this week. That's moping."

"Ice cream is a perfectly acceptable dinner," I argued.

"Not when you eat the entire tub while crying," Jenna said. "Now come on. Get dressed. We're meeting the girls at that new brunch place downtown."

I sighed. There was no point in arguing with Jenna when she made up her mind about something.

"Fine," I said. "But I'm not wearing makeup."

"Deal," Jenna said. "Just wear something cute. And brush your hair. You look like you got electrocuted."

I looked in the mirror and she was right. My hair was sticking up in every direction.

"Okay, okay, I'm going," I said, shuffling to the bathroom.

Thirty minutes later, I was dressed in jeans and a sweater, my hair pulled back in a ponytail. It wasn't fancy, but at least I looked human.

"Much better," Jenna said when I came out. "Now let's go. The girls are already there."

We took an Uber to the restaurant, which was in a trendy part of town I didn't usually go to. Everything looked expensive and fancy.

"Are you sure we can afford this place?" I asked Jenna as we walked in.

"It's brunch, not dinner," Jenna said. "How expensive can eggs be?"

Very expensive, apparently. I looked at the menu and almost choked. Twenty dollars for avocado toast?

"This is insane," I whispered to Jenna.

"Just order something cheap," she whispered back.

"Everything is expensive!"

"Maya! Jenna! Over here!" I heard someone call out.

I looked up to see our friends Rachel and Sophie waving at us from a table by the window.

We walked over and sat down.

"Hey guys!" Rachel said excitedly. "I'm so glad you could make it!"

Rachel was always excited about everything. She had this bubbly personality that made everyone around her happy. She was studying fashion design and always dressed like she was going to a photoshoot.

"Thanks for inviting us," I said, giving her a hug.

"How are you doing, Maya?" Sophie asked with concern in her voice. "Jenna told us about Erik."

I shot Jenna a look. She just shrugged.

"I'm fine," I said, even though I wasn't. "It's whatever."

"Boys are stupid anyway," Rachel said matter-of-factly. "You deserve better."

"Exactly," Sophie agreed. "Erik was boring anyway. All he ever talked about was his car."

That was true. Erik did talk about his car a lot. Like, a lot a lot.

"Thanks guys," I said, smiling for real this time. "You're right. I'm better off without him."

"That's the spirit!" Rachel said. "Now let's order some ridiculously overpriced food and forget all about stupid boys!"

We all laughed and opened our menus.

I ended up ordering the cheapest thing I could find, which was still fifteen dollars for a basic omelet. But it was nice to be out with my friends, laughing and talking about random stuff.

We were in the middle of dessert when Sophie suddenly gasped.

"Oh my god, don't look now, but there's a really hot guy staring at you, Maya," she said.

Of course, I immediately looked.

And my heart dropped.

It was Ethan. From the coffee shop. And he was walking straight toward our table.

"Crap," I muttered under my breath.

"What? Do you know him?" Jenna asked.

"He's a customer from the coffee shop," I said quickly. "He's kind of rude."

But before I could say anything else, Ethan was standing at our table.

"Maya," he said, his voice cold as usual.

"Ethan," I replied, trying to sound casual. "Hi."

"I didn't expect to see you here," he said, looking around at my friends. "Are you following me?"

My jaw dropped. "Excuse me?"

"This is my regular brunch spot," Ethan said. "And suddenly you show up. Seems suspicious."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Was he serious right now?

"I've never been here before in my life," I said, feeling my face get hot. "And trust me, if I knew you were going to be here, I would have gone somewhere else."

Ethan's eyes narrowed. "Right."

"Look, I don't know what your problem is," I said, standing up. "But I'm not following you. The world doesn't revolve around you."

"Could have fooled me," Ethan said. "You seem to show up everywhere I am."

"That's called a coincidence!" I said, my voice getting louder. "And for your information, I work at that coffee shop. So technically, you're the one who keeps showing up where I am!"

People at nearby tables were starting to stare, but I didn't care. This guy had some nerve.

"Whatever," Ethan said. "Just stay away from me."

"Gladly!" I shot back.

Ethan turned and walked away, back to his own table on the other side of the restaurant.

I sat back down, my hands shaking with anger.

"What the hell was that?" Rachel asked, her eyes wide.

"That," I said, "is the most arrogant person I've ever met in my life."

"He's also really hot," Sophie said.

"Sophie!" Jenna said, slapping her arm.

"What? I'm just saying," Sophie said defensively. "He's rude, but he's hot."

"Being hot doesn't give you the right to be a jerk," I said, taking a sip of my water.

"True," Rachel agreed. "But why does he think you're following him?"

"I have no idea," I said. "He comes to the coffee shop every single day. And now he's acting like I'm stalking him or something. It's crazy."

"Maybe he likes you," Sophie suggested.

"What? No," I said quickly. "He hates me. He makes that very clear every time I see him."

"Sometimes guys are mean to girls they like," Rachel said. "It's like elementary school all over again."

"We're not in elementary school," I said. "We're adults. If he liked me, he would just say so."

"Not all guys are that mature," Jenna said. "Some of them still pull pigtails, metaphorically speaking."

"Well, even if he did like me, which he doesn't, I wouldn't be interested," I said firmly. "He's rude and arrogant and thinks the world revolves around him."

"But he's hot," Sophie said again.

We all laughed, and I felt myself relax a little bit.

For the rest of brunch, I tried not to look at Ethan's table. But I could feel his eyes on me every once in a while. It was unnerving.

When we finally left, I made sure to walk out without looking in his direction.

"That was interesting," Jenna said as we got into an Uber.

"That's one word for it," I said.

"Do you think you'll see him again?" Jenna asked.

"Probably," I said. "He comes to the coffee shop every day, remember?"

"Maybe Monday he won't show up," Jenna suggested hopefully.

But something told me that wasn't going to happen.

---

ETHAN'S POV

I watched as Maya and her friends left the restaurant, and I couldn't help but feel annoyed.

Why was she everywhere I went? First the coffee shop, now my favorite brunch place. It was getting ridiculous.

"Dude, what was that about?" my friend Lucas asked from across the table.

Lucas and I had known each other since college. He was one of the few people I actually trusted.

"Nothing," I said, going back to my food.

"That didn't look like anything," Lucas said. "You basically accused that girl of stalking you."

"She works at the coffee shop I go to," I explained. "And now she shows up here. It's weird."

"Or it's a coincidence," Lucas suggested. "This place is pretty popular."

"Maybe," I said, but I wasn't convinced.

"You know what I think?" Lucas said, leaning back in his chair. "I think you like her."

I almost choked on my coffee. "What? No."

"You definitely like her," Lucas said with a grin. "Otherwise you wouldn't care if she was here or not."

"I don't like her," I said firmly. "She's annoying."

"Annoying how?" Lucas asked.

"She's just... always there," I said, struggling to explain. "And she's too cheerful. And she asks too many questions."

"So she's friendly?" Lucas said. "That's what you're complaining about?"

"No, it's not that," I said. "She's just... I don't know. She gets under my skin."

"Because you like her," Lucas said again.

"I don't like her," I repeated.

But even as I said it, I wasn't sure if I was telling the truth.

There was something about Maya that I couldn't figure out. She wasn't like other people I knew. She didn't care about money or status. She was just... herself.

And that scared me.

"Whatever you say, man," Lucas said, clearly not believing me. "But you should probably apologize to her. That was pretty harsh."

"I'm not apologizing," I said. "She's the one who keeps showing up where I am."

"Right," Lucas said sarcastically. "Because she has nothing better to do than follow you around."

I glared at him, but he just laughed.

Maybe he was right. Maybe I had overreacted. But I wasn't going to admit that.

"Can we just drop it?" I asked.

"Sure," Lucas said. "But this conversation isn't over."

Great. Just what I needed.